


Another Stolen Relic

by swinggal138



Series: Anne and Loki [3]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Asgard, Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, F/M, Feels, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, Light BDSM, Minor Violence, Post-Avengers Asgard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-19
Updated: 2013-08-19
Packaged: 2017-12-24 00:53:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 12,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/933187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swinggal138/pseuds/swinggal138
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Loki and Anne attempt to work through various problems that arise in their relationship. Anne's best friend, Alice, joins her in Asgard in an attempt to escape her violent ex-boyfriend and ends up making an unique connection with Thor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Anne slowly woke up, rolling over and looking at the still-sleeping Asgardian prince; he looked so serene with his face peaceful and his long, elegant arm wrapped tightly around her middle. She knew this peaceful appearance would instantly vanish once he woke up, never quite able to hide the mischievous glint in his eye. Anne snuggled deeper into Loki’s chest, happier than she had ever been in her life. She had only been in Asgard a few months but she knew she was never going to leave. Her days were spent in Loki’s palace, where she had servants waiting on her and her wonderful man provided every resource imaginable to encourage her writing. Back on Midgard, or Earth, she had been a writer in her free time but was never able to focus on it because she always had to have a job to pay her bills; Loki changed all that for her. He encouraged her writing, even helping her get back to Earth to look for places to publish it. She couldn’t believe that she actually found a man who not only understood all her self-esteem and family issues but encouraged her passions. And she wouldn’t even start on what happened in their bedroom; saying he was a god would be an understatement. Which, speaking of, Anne leaned over and placed a long, deep kiss on Loki’s lips all the while tracing her fingers up and down his bare chest. Slowly, he woke up, his long eyelashes fluttering open and giving her a wicked grin as she pulled away from his lips and began kissing a long line down his neck, biting and sucking the sensitive skin there as she went. He moaned a bit, letting her have the control for a moment, before quickly flipping her on her back, pinning her to bed and leering down at her,  
“Well, someone’s in a saucy mood this morning,” he said, grinning while leaning down to bite her ear, making her gasp and try to wriggle out of his grasp, which only made him tighten his grip more. He continued biting and sucking down her neck, making sure to leave a mark. Suddenly, he bit down on her collarbone, instantly running his tongue over the bite to soothe the pain, causing her to moan.   
“Hmm...I like it when I can elicit such sounds from you. Let’s see what else I can make you do,” he said, leaning down to capture her mouth again.


	2. Chapter 2

Later that day, Anne sat in the massive library Loki had in the palace, working on her latest story when her mind started to wander. Loki would be out all day at the main palace with his brother, Thor. Now, Loki and Thor did not get along by any means but lately Thor had been needing his brother’s help on something. So, with Loki out all day, Anne decided to abandon her writing and do something special for him. After giving the servants a day off, she set about making a massive, fancy dinner for him, carefully choosing all his favorite things. Once she was done with all the necessary prep work, she spent the rest of the day reclining in the fancy bathtub, bathing herself in all the best oils and fragrances. She spent extra time on her hair, curling the red locks so they fell down her chest and framed her face. Finally, knowing Loki would be home soon, she put some final touches on dinner and went to change. It took some deliberation but she finally settled on a sheer emerald dressing gown that hid nothing, beneath wearing emerald undergarments, complete with garter belt and stockings. It was his favorite color on her, his color, and this particular garment was brand new. She knew Loki would lose his mind when he saw it, but she fully intended on making him eat the dinner she cooked before anything else happened that might be on his mind.  
Loki would be home any minute and Anne waited impatiently on a fainting couch Loki had placed in the living room. She heard the palace door open and grinned as Loki walked into the room, getting his first look at her. He stared at her as she got off the couch, approaching him slowly, still beaming seductively at him. No words escaped his mouth as he watched her.  
“Don’t you have anything to say about my outfit? Or have I actually left the one with the silver tongue speechless?”  
Finally regaining his sense, he beamed down at her in awe as she wrapped her arms about his waist.  
“You, my queen, are the only one capable of that,” he said, leaning down to kiss her passionately, threading his fingers in her hair. Upon breaking the kiss, Anne smiled at him again,  
“Just wait until you see what other surprises I have in store for you.”  
“You have been in a cheeky, playful mood today; I think I like it.”  
“I just want to show you how much I love you; how happy I am to have you in my life.”  
“The feeling is mutual, I assure you, my love,” he said, kissing her again.  
“And,” he said, moving his lips to her ear, he whispered, “if you will allow me, I promise to demonstrate to you just how much I love you,” concluding his statement with a nip at her ear.  
Almost caving, she pulled back from him, grinning wickedly,   
“Plenty of time for that later. But first, I have prepared a lavish dinner for you and it would be a shame to see it go to waste.”  
“Well, I see you have been quite busy today. And where are all the servants?”  
“Gone. I gave them the day off...and the night.”  
“So we are entirely alone in the palace?”  
“Entirely.”  
Loki seemed to ponder the implications of this fact as Anne led him into the dining hall for dinner; he knew that it would be a long and pleasurable night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This is a very dark chapter for Loki. He gets incredibly violent but there is an explanation for it.

The next day, Loki once again trekked over to Thor's palace, exhausted yet still beaming from his wonderful night with Anne. He had been spending far too much time with Thor in his personal opinion but his aid was requested on a treaty with Nidavellir, assuring that any weapons they made with the same destructive power of Mjolnir, came solely to Asgard. His reputation of having a silver tongue meant his input on the wording of the treaty was invaluable. However, Thor kept questioning Loki and wanting to put in his own revisions, despite Loki's warnings that they would only upset the dwarves and their weapons would be used against Asgard rather than for it.  
That day, Thor seemed in an exceptionally petulant mood, contradicting every other word that came out of Loki's mouth until Loki had had about enough.  
"Listen brother," Thor bellowed, "Need I remind you that this is still my realm. I am the rightful king not you!"  
"Then why did you even ask for my help with this treaty, Odinson, if your only intent was to contradict me?! Did you feel yet another need to make yourself feel superior to me?" Loki retorted, his anger rising and an icy blue beginning to slip in amongst the green in his eyes. He stood to leave, anxious to just get back to Anne, who was normally quite effective in calming him down when his anger towards Thor got the best of him.  
"Sit back down!" Thor yelled, rising to his feet as well, "We are not finished here yet. I know your only purposes are selfish and you only desire to return to your precious Midgardian wench but need I remind you that I can command her to leave at any time I wish. And, since this treaty will help protect Asgard and she is serving to be a distraction from it, I would be well within my rights to do so."  
Loki's eyes blazed bright blue now, his anger overcoming every atom in his being when Thor threatened Anne.  
"You would want to take the one pleasure and happiness I have in life simply because you couldn't get your Midgardian maiden to come back with you because you abandoned her for years and were so arrogant to think she would wait around for you."  
"Do not bring Jane into this!"  
"Why? You brought Anne into this! The only reason you don't want it brought up is because for once I finally have something that you couldn't obtain due to your arrogance and pride!"  
And with that, Loki stormed out of the palace, anger seeping through his body, and over-riding his thoughts. He returned back to his palace, slamming the door when he entered. Anne emerged from the library, wondering what the fuss was all about. All it took was one look at his face to know exactly what was wrong and Anne approached him, wrapping her arms around his waist,  
"Did you have another fight with your brother?"  
"He is NOT my brother!" Loki bellowed at her, pushing her away.  
"Ok...I'm sorry," Anne said. She had never seen Loki this upset before or his eyes so blue; the fight must have been a bad one.  
"Loki...my love..." she said, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Talk to me. What was the fight about?"  
"Nothing."  
"Well, it can't have been nothing. Whatever it was he said, I'm sure he didn't mean it. He does love you Loki and it kills me to see you fight with him so much."  
Loki suddenly turned on her, glaring at her harshly.  
"Are you defending him right now?!"  
"No...I just..."  
"It figures that even after all this time, you would end up defending him!"  
"I'm not...I'm just saying..." but Anne didn't get the chance to finish her statement as Loki cut off her words with an aggressive slap across her face, a sharp edge on his armor cutting her and causing blood to trickle down her cheek.  
“Loki!" Anne yelled, looking angry rather than afraid, "You need to calm down."  
Loki roughly picked her up by her arms, throwing her roughly against the wall behind her and pinning her to it, leaving her feet dangling below her.  
"Don't tell me to calm down! After all I've done for you! And you defend him! He was trying to get rid of you and I stood up for you! Then you betray me like this!"  
Anne shook her head, truly frightened of the person in front of her, but as she looked in his eyes, blazing icy blue with hints of red, she knew this was not her Loki; something else had taken over. He shook her, continuing his rant,  
"Perhaps you would like to leave! Or perhaps I should have just left you on Midgard at the mercy of those two boys in the parking lot!"  
Anne started crying,  
"Loki, I know you don't mean that. I don't know what has gotten into you but this isn't who you are. Please, put me down. I love you."  
Loki removed her roughly from the wall, throwing her to the ground, causing her to hit her face on a chair. Anne just lay there, in pain and not sure what to do, sobs racking her body and Loki just looked down at her.  
"The sight of you sickens me, you mewling quim," he said, storming out.  
Anne just lay there on the floor, crying, knowing that the man who just left was not her Loki. She wasn't sure what had happened but she hoped it wasn't permanent.  
Thor was just approaching the palace, intent on making things right with his brother and knowing he had taken things too far that day. He was about to knock when Loki threw the door open, storming past him as if he didn't even see him. Thor looked at his bother as it slowly dawned on him exactly what was wrong and rushed into the palace, not sure of what damage he would find. As he entered, he saw Anne on the floor, bleeding and sobbing. He rushed to her side and dropped to his knees beside her.  
"Did Loki do this to you?"  
"Yes, but it wasn't him. There was something...different...something messing with his mind."  
"I know."  
"You know?"  
"Yes. This has happened before."  
Thor slowly picked Anne off the floor, carrying her to a nearby couch and placing her gently on it.  
"I have only seen it once but there is phase of anger he reaches where it takes over his mind and he destroys all in his way. The last time it happened was when he broke out of his cell, right before you got here. I went to see him, finding all my guards dead. When I asked him about this later, he had no memory of it. I know he has no control in this mindset because last time, he murdered the one guard who was his loyal friend, truly the only other person I have seen him care for aside from you. His sorrow upon hearing what he had done was great."  
"What causes such anger?" Anne asked, flinching a little as Thor gently cleaned the cut on her face and got her ice to place against her already black eye.  
"We do not know but I suspect it has something to do with whoever sent him to collect the Tesseract. They messed in his mind and these fits of anger are residual damage."  
Thor looked over at her, sudden sorrow in his eyes as he looked at the injuries covering Anne.  
"This is my fault."  
"No, it's not. How is this your fault?"  
"I provoked him today and said things I should never have said. Anne, you have my sincerest apologies."  
"I am not blaming you...or him."  
"You should come and stay at my palace tonight, so I can watch over you and make certain you are safe."  
"Thank you for your offer but considering the circumstances, it might be better if I stayed here. Besides, I want to be here if he should come home."  
"Perhaps you are right," Thor said, standing to leave, "But please let me know if there is anything you require from me."  
"I will. Thank you."  
Thor placed a kiss on the back of her hand and left the palace. Anne slowly stood up, sore, unsure what to do. Eventually, she decided the best course of action would be to go to bed and see if Loki had returned by morning.


	4. Chapter 4

Early in the morning, Loki awoke to find himself in one of the chairs in the library. Had he fallen asleep reading? Feeling guilty about leaving Anne in their bed alone, he wandered through the early morning light to the bedroom, removing his armor and crawling into bed with her. She was fast asleep with her back to him and he placed a trail of light kisses along her shoulder. Anne suddenly startled awake, pulling away from him and grabbing the covers close to her chest.  
"I'm sorry, my queen, I didn't mean to frighten you. And I apologize for not coming to bed last night; I assure you I will make it up to."  
He reached his hand over to pull the covers away from her but she held them tighter against her, staring at him warily.  
"Darling, what is it?"  
Finally able to get the covers away from her, Loki glanced over her body, finally noticing the bruises on her arms, the cut on her cheek, and her black eye.  
"Who did this to you?!" he yelled, his anger causing her to pull away from him and shield her face with her hands. Loki lowered the volume of his voice and asked her again,  
"Anne, who did this to you? Please tell me."  
Anne looked at him, knowing it was, in fact, her Loki in front of her and unsure of what to say to him. She didn't want him to know that he was the cause of her injuries. Loki searched her eyes and he slowly began to realize what he was seeing. As he racked his brain, he realized he couldn't remember what he did last night. The last thing he could recall was the beginning of a fight with Thor. Tears suddenly filling his eyes, he looked at Anne again,  
"Anne...did I do this to you?"  
She slowly nodded, tears filling up in her own eyes as she saw the pain this realization was causing him. Loki rolled away from her, sitting on the edge of the bed, head in his hands as he wept. Anne slowly approached him, putting a hand on his shoulder but he pulled away from her.  
"Loki, my love, it's okay. I know it wasn't you. You would never hurt me like this. I understand that something else was messing in your mind. I don't blame you. I promise."  
She got off the bed and went to sink down in front of him, pulling his hands away from his face and looking him in the eye,  
"Look at me. I love you. I always will. Please don't blame yourself for this. I'm okay."  
He looked down at her, tears still flowing down his face, as he reached a thumb out and barely brushed it across the cut on her cheek. Anne flinched and Loki's heart shattered all over again.  
"Why did you stay? After I was such a monster to you?"  
"Because, my king, I love you. I am yours...forever...or as long as you will have me."  
"I will have you forever," he responded, raising Anne up so she was on her knees. He brought his lips down to hers, kissing her with every bit of love and regret he felt. Once they broke apart, Anne crawled back into the bed with him, wrapping herself around him and laying her head on his chest as his fingers played with her hair and stroked her arm. Finally, she fell back asleep and as Loki lay there, feeling her even breathing falling across his chest, he vowed he would find a way to fix things with Thor, if only to keep her safe from himself.


	5. Chapter 5

After a week or so, Anne had finally healed from her injuries. The bruises had faded and her body was no longer sore. Loki, after many reassurances from Anne, went to reconcile with Thor, enabling them to get along long enough to finish the treaty. Anne had to admit she was grateful the treaty was complete because it meant Loki stayed home with her now during the day, lavishing much attention on her, but still allowing her time to read and write. One day, she was sitting in the library, reading a book on Asgardian history, when something silky slipped over her eyes, blocking her vision.  
"Loki..." she whined, "I was reading that."  
"Yes," he said, tying the scarf securely around her eyes, "and now you are not. You see, you are feeling better now, completely healed, and your king has a request to ask of you."  
"Oh really?"  
"Indeed, one that I know you will not deny me," he crooned in her ear, taking her wrists and pulling them together behind the chair. He was just wrapping a scarf tightly around them when Anne's cell phone rang. Anne had to admit she was a bit shocked when the Doctor, by means of the TARDIS, enabled her cell phone to work, even in Asgard. But she was grateful for it; it was her only real way of keeping connected to people in Midgard.  
"You can call them back later," Loki said, sucking a mark into her neck.  
"But Loki, what if it's my mom? You know she will just keep calling if I don't answer and that will ruin all the fun."  
Loki conceded, knowing she was right, and untied her wrists so she could answer the phone.  
"Hello?"  
"Anne...it's me."  
"Alice?"  
Alice was Anne's best friend and the only person who knew about her being in Asgard. Anne missed her dearly but was grateful that she was able to keep in touch with her.  
"Alice, how are...Loki stop!" she said as Loki started running his tongue up her neck to her ear, "Alice, how are you?"  
"Umm..." Alice said, her voice shaking, almost like she was crying, "Should I call back later?"  
"No...no...Alice, are you okay? What's wrong?"  
Loki moved away from her, hearing the concern in her voice, as Anne removed the blindfold.  
"I'm...no, I'm not okay. You remember that guy I was dating, Mark?"  
"Yeah, what about him?"  
"Well, he started getting abusive so I dumped him. And now he is stalking me, waiting outside my work sometimes, driving past my house…"  
"That bastard! I'll end him!"  
Loki looked at her, mouthing "what's wrong?"  
"Hold on Alice....Alice says her boyfriend started abusing her and is now stalking her."  
Loki stood up abruptly from where he was sitting, anger in his eyes,  
"What is him name? I will have Heimdall locate him and..."  
Alice, overhearing Loki, said to Anne,  
"Tell Loki I greatly appreciate the offer but it's okay. I filed for a restraining order but it will take a few days to be in effect. So...I was just wondering...this is such a huge favor to ask..."  
"What? What is it?"  
"Could I come and stay with you and Loki for awhile? In Asgard?"  
"You know, let me talk it over with Loki, but I imagine that won't be a problem at all."  
"Ok, I would greatly appreciate it."  
"Of course. Let me call you back in a bit, okay? Are you at work?"  
"Yeah."  
"Okay, I will talk to you soon," she said, hanging up the phone.  
Loki looked at her, a question in his eyes.  
"Alice wants to know if she can come stay with us for a few days until her restraining order takes effect."  
"Of course."  
"Really?"  
"She is your friend and her happiness will bring you happiness. And I can never deny you happiness, my queen. Call her back and tell her we will be at her work in three hours. She will be safe here, I assure you."  
"Thank you. I love you, my king."  
"Well make that phone call with haste and I will allow you to show me how much you love me," Loki said, an evil smirk on his face, moving towards the chair again to once again tie the blindfold around Anne's eyes.  
Quickly, she made the phone call, telling Alice they would be there to pick her up and not worry about going back to grab stuff from her place because they had everything she would need here. Anne hung up the phone and Loki stepped around to the back of the chair.  
"Now...where were we? Ah yes, I believe right here," he said, taking Anne's wrists in his hands and tying them together behind the chair with a scarf before leaning down and drawing a moan from Anne's lips as he sucked her earlobe into his mouth.


	6. Chapter 6

Upon fixing themselves up a bit, Loki and Anne headed out to the Bifröst, where Heimdall stood.  
"You shouldn't bring another Midgardian here without the king's permission," he said.  
Loki clenched his fist, about to say something, but Anne gently placed a hand on his arm, giving him a soft look that said she would handle it. Heimdall had taken a great liking to her for some reason, enjoying her snark and the fact that she could keep Loki in line, and she could really get him to do just about anything for her. Anne approached him, tilting her head adorably to the side and smiling at him.  
"It's just for a few days," she said, "She's in danger. And besides, she will just be staying in Loki's palace the whole time. Thor won't even know she's here."  
Heimdall looked down at her, knowing he was unable to resist her.  
"Alright. But only a few days. If she causes trouble, I will not hesitate to go the king."  
"I completely understand," Anne said, grabbing Loki's hand and heading into the Bifröst. It spun around, ejecting them in the street, right near where Alice worked.  
Just before they went in, Anne suddenly shot Loki a look.  
"You might want to change. There is no need to cause a scene with your leather and metal and stuff."  
Loki smirked at her, "Are you saying you want me to remove my clothing?"  
Anne just shook her head at him and Loki finally transformed his Asgardian armor into a nice suit with a striped scarf around his neck. Satisfied, Anne leaned up to place a quick kiss on his lips before taking his hand and walking into Alice's office. Alice was a fashion writer for a magazine; she had some vacation time saved up and her boss thought it was a good idea for her to go away for a few days. Alice was waiting in her office when Loki and Anne walked in. The girls embraced, having not seen each other in awhile, although Anne always made it a point to visit her when she was in Midgard. However, despite all that Anne talked about him, Alice had yet to meet Loki and she could see instantly why Anne loved him. His very presence was intoxicating and he was incredibly attractive with his enchanting green eyes and wicked smile. He approached Alice, taking her hand in his,  
"You must be Alice," he said, brushing a kiss on the top of her knuckles, causing Alice to blush, "I have heard so much about you and it is an honor to finally meet you."  
"Likewise. Well, we better get going. I asked my boss to let me off early so we can leave before Mark shows up."  
"Or..."Loki said with a smirk, "We could wait around and I would be more than happy to demonstrate to him what comes of disrespecting a beautiful woman."  
Alice blushed again and smiled but told him that wouldn't be necessary.  
"I just need to get away for a few days until the restraining order is in place."  
"That is fair. Well know that my offer still stands should the situation ever arise."  
"Thank you." The three of them left her office and walked back out to the street. Before she knew what was happening, Alice found herself standing in a gold room with circles etched all over the walls.  
"Welcome to Asgard!" Anne said as they headed out of the Bifröst and onto the rainbow bridge, doing a quick check to make sure Thor was nowhere in sight. Alice's eyes opened wide as she took in her new surroundings, with tall beautiful buildings stretching to a gorgeous sky. The three of them walked to Loki's palace and Alice was impressed by its size and beautiful architecture. Anne led Alice down a hallway and showed her into the room she would be staying in; Alice was the most excited about the beautiful dresses hanging in her closet that Loki had the servants fetch for her while they were out.  
"The bathroom is down the hall. You can take a bath if you want before dinner."  
Alice agreed that a bath sounded amazing and she went down the hall, filling the  
enormous, intricate tub and slipping out of her Midgardian clothes.


	7. Chapter 7

The next two days, Anne and Alice spent every waking second together, Anne not minding neglecting her writing for awhile; Loki kept to himself, allowing the girls time together. But eventually, Anne had to return to her work. She had finally found a publisher on Midgard interested in publishing her book and she needed to get him the complete manuscript soon. So she returned to her little spot in the library. As she worked, Loki spent time with Alice, getting to know more about her, teaching her about Asgard, and even asking her things about Anne so he might surprise her later. At first, Anne was excited to have them spending time together; it was cute that Loki was taking time to get to know her best friend. But after a day or two, Anne started to notice things, like them laughing a lot together and sitting unnecessarily close. She knew Alice would never make a move on her man. But Loki had a silver tongue and could convince anyone to do almost anything. And she wouldn't blame him for falling for Alice; she was beautiful and intelligent. And although she knew it was not actually Loki saying those horrible things to her the night of the incident, she kept wondering if some of them might be true. What if Loki really did want her to leave? What if Thor was becoming annoyed by her presence in his realm? Once these thoughts had taken root in her mind, it was impossible to get them out. Everyone in her life had gotten sick of her eventually, why would Loki be an exception?  
One night, a few days later, Anne lay in their bed, unable to sleep. It was really late and Loki had never come to bed. The last she saw of him, he had been in the library with Alice by the fire, pouring over an old book. Tears began to trickle down her cheek as the unbidden image of him and her best friend, cuddled by the fire, exchanging kisses, entered her mind. She wasn't even mad at them either; she didn't blame them. They were two wonderful people who deserved happiness and she didn't want to be the one standing in the way of that. The tears were flowing freely down her cheeks when she heard the bedroom door open and Loki entered. She turned her back to him, not wanting him to see her crying. He removed his clothing with a wave of his hand and crawled into bed with her.  
"I apologize, my queen. Alice and I lost track of the hour."  
He rolled over and placed his arm around her waist, pulling her to him. Anne didn't respond to him, continuing to just lay there.  
"Is something the matter, my pet?" Loki asked, rolling her over so he could gaze down at her. A look of confusion crossed his face as he saw the tears streaming down, "Are you really that upset about me being late to bed?"  
"Loki," she finally managed to say, "do you want me to leave? I can…if you want. I don't want to be in the way and I'm sure Heimdall would send me back to Midgard in the morning."  
"Leave? Why would I want you to leave?"  
"So, you can, you know, be with Alice?"  
"Why would I...oh, my pet, is that what has been bothering you recently? You think I want Alice and not you?"  
"Well, you have been spending a lot of time with her. And she is incredibly beautiful...and intelligent..."  
"And not you...not my queen. You are the only woman I will ever love, the only one who understands me and accepts me...who does not see me as the monster I am. Alice is your friend and very important to you. Therefore she is important to me. But it is you who are my queen."  
Suddenly, Loki was on top of her, hovering over her, bracing his arms against the headboard as he gazed down at her. Anne knew that look in his eyes and finally gave him a small smile, wiping the remaining tears away. Encouraged by her smile, Loki reached down, one of his long fingers tracing over a mark he had left on her a few days ago,  
"Also, Alice does not, and will never, bear my marks, of which I intend to leave many on your body this evening lest you ever forget who you belong to. And to remind people that see you that you are mine."  
And with that he lay on top of her, pressing his full body weight against her and he leaned in and sucked a large dark mark on Anne's neck, drawing a moan out of her lips and he ran his hands down her bare sides. When Loki moved away from her neck, Anne reached her hands up into his hair, giving it a hard tug that caused him to growl against her collarbone as she sucked a mark onto his now-exposed neck. Drawing her head back, she looked up at him with a snarky grin,  
"Possession goes both ways."  
Loki smirked down at her before leaning in to capture her lips in a possessive and passionate kiss, exploring her mouth as he grabbed her wrists and tied them tightly to the headboard with the scarf already hanging there.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, Anne found Alice in the kitchen, reading a book and sipping coffee. She approached her quietly, pouring herself a cup of coffee in the process, and joining her friend at the table.  
"Hey," Anne said.  
Alice looked up from her book, smiling at her.  
"Hey."  
"Can we talk?"  
"Sure, what's going on?" Alice asked, raising an eyebrow at the many dark marks covering her friend’s neck and the red marks on her wrists, but choosing not to say anything.  
"I just wanted to apologize if I have been acting rude or anything lately. I guess I was just really jealous of all the time you were spending with Loki."  
"I didn't notice you acting different but I'm sorry if I made you jealous. You know I wouldn't ever go after your guy."  
"I know. I just get worried that Loki will get bored with me someday."  
Alice once again looked down at the marks on Anne,  
"Yeah, I don't think boredom will be an issue."  
The two girls laughed as Loki entered the kitchen, giving them a questioning look. Alice noticed that he also had many marks peeking out from underneath his green shirt.  
"Listen," Alice started, "Anne, why don't you take a day off of writing and spend the day with Loki? I can entertain myself; I will probably just go read in the garden."  
Anne barely had time to agree before Loki had picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder, and vanished down the hall towards the bedroom. Alice just shook her head, grabbing her book and heading outside into the glorious garden, finding a bench and reclining on it. After a few hours, Alice got up to stretch her legs, wandering among the flowers and enjoying the glorious sunshine. Meanwhile, up in his chambers, Thor was just emerging from a bath, towel wrapped around his waist when he happened to glance down. Before now, he hadn't realized he could see the garden of Loki's palace from his balcony but something in it caught his eye today. Among the flowers was a beautiful girl in a blue dress; her dress was Asgardian but she was far too small to actually be from his realm. Confused, he stared at the girl, who he was guessing was Midgardian. He hadn't known about another visitor coming to Asgard. What was Loki up to? It seemed unlikely that he could mean any harm with this enchanting woman but Thor knew he should investigate anyway. Taking one last lingering look at the girl, he changed into his clothing and made his way to Loki's palace.  
Thor approached the palace, banging his fist on the front door.  
"Brother!" he thundered, "Open this door! I demand explanation for the Midgardian maiden wandering in your garden."  
A moment later, Loki opened the front door, wearing only his leather pants.  
"What are you bellowing about, Odinson?”  
Anne appeared from around the corner, just finishing tying a silk, emerald robe closed around her body. Thor was slightly embarrassed when he realized what he had interrupted but he let the moment pass.  
"Brother, can you not behave yourself?"  
"I assure you I have no idea what you are talking about," Loki said, picking up Anne's hand and kissing the red mark on her wrist.  
"I am referring to the Midgardian. I saw her wandering in the garden from my balcony. I am not sure what you are plotting but..."  
Anne cut him off,  
"I brought her here Thor."  
"You? You dare to usurp my authority?"  
Anne felt Loki tense up at the king's harsh tone towards her, but she placed a comforting hand on his arm, addressing Thor.  
"It was a hasty decision. The man she was dating started stalking her and put her life in danger. I brought her here to keep her safe. I apologize for not telling you of her."  
Thor softened a bit,  
"Well I would not deny the protection of a maiden. She is welcome to stay here for as long as she needs."  
"Thank you."  
At that moment, Alice came in from the garden, having heard the commotion. Thor couldn't take his eyes off her, watching her as she approached Anne and Loki, rolling her eyes at their appearance. Thor was taken with her; she was so beautiful and delicate, with a sweet, innocent smile. Suddenly, thoughts of Jane didn't have any importance.  
"Speaking of," Anne said, "Thor this is Alice. Alice this is Thor, King of Asgard."  
"It's nice to meet you," Alice said, extending her hand, Thor taking it and brushing a kiss against her knuckles. Alice blushed and stared at the attractive king.  
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Alice. I apologize for not extending my welcome sooner but I was unaware of your presence in my realm. I hope that you might accept my apology in the form of a feast tonight at my palace. I extend the invitation to all of you."  
Loki was about to protest but Anne silenced him with a look, accepting the invitation on behalf of all three of them. Loki, knowing he was beaten, went back inside his palace, heading for the bedroom.  
"I'm going to pay for that in a moment," Anne said.  
She then looked at Thor, noticing the way he was staring and grinning at Alice, who seemed to be having the same expression towards him.  
"Thor, um, maybe you could show Alice around Asgard this afternoon before we have to get ready for the banquet."  
"It would be my honor," he replied, offering his arm to Alice.  
"Are you sure?" Alice asked, but Anne just gave her a look.  
Alice then took Thor's arm and the two of them walked towards his palace, with a promise that he would bring Alice back in time for her to prepare for the evening. Anne smiled, shutting the door behind them and heading for the bedroom. Perhaps Alice would be staying in Asgard after all.


	9. Chapter 9

That night, Alice and Anne were putting the final touches on their look for the banquet; Anne was wearing Loki's favorite emerald gown and Alice decided to go with an elegant red dress. The servants had just finished Alice's hair and she went down to join Anne where she was waiting for Loki to finish getting ready so they could leave. As she approached her friend, Alice took one look at Anne and burst out laughing.  
"What?" Anne asked, rushing to a mirror to see if she had something on her face.  
"Nothing...it's just...the classiness and elegance of that dress is a bit negated by the mass amount of all those love bites you're sporting."  
At this point, Loki appeared, going up behind Anne and placing his arms around her waist.  
"I think she looks divine. And those marks are to remind her, and everyone, that she will always have my love," he said, leaning down to darken one on her neck, "and that I will always have hers."  
Alice hated to admit it but that was actually pretty cute, especially when she noticed the loving gaze Anne cast at Loki. She knew her best friend had always struggled with self-esteem issues, people walking out of her life at a constant rate. It was nice to see her with someone that truly loved and treasured her and wasn't afraid to announce to the world that she was with him, even if he did announce it in a rather inappropriate fashion.  
Upon arriving at Thor's palace, the three to them were quickly escorted to the banquet hall. When Thor saw Alice, he instantly rose to his feet, then gestured to the seat next to him. Alice went over and sat down, giving Thor a shy smile and he beamed down at her. Anne and Loki took their seats beside his and Thor's mother. She smiled at Anne and then looked at the marks on her neck and wrists and the marks Loki was also sporting on his neck and chest. She raised an eyebrow at them but elected not to say anything. The feast was incredible with delicious food and wine in abundance. Throughout the meal, Thor and Alice exchanged glances and talked animatedly with one another. After awhile, Anne and Loki decided to leave; she knew Loki had trouble being in this environment for an extended time, watching people fawn over his brother. They told Alice to stay and enjoy herself and walked off towards the palace. It wasn't until many hours later that Alice finally headed back to the palace herself, Thor walking her there himself, placing a kiss on her hand before returning to his own.  
The next morning, Anne sat in the kitchen sipping coffee and reading; Loki had some business to attend to and wouldn't be back until later that evening. Alice walked in, yawning as she poured herself a cup of coffee and joined Anne at the table.  
"So..." Anne began, giving her friend a look, "tell me about your evening with Thor. I noticed you two flirting."  
"He is really amazing," Alice said, blushing.  
"He is. Are you going to see him today?"  
"Actually, yes. I was telling him about my studies in cryptology and he said there is some ancient history text he has been working on decoding but he is a bit stuck. He asked if I would be willing to come over and help him with it. I figure since I might be here a few more days, I might as well keep myself busy."  
"I think he just wants to spend time with you," Anne said with a sassy grin. Alice just shot her a look.  
"Don't be ridiculous. I mean, he has been super nice to me but he's not interested in me. Not that way. He is king of Asgard. Why would he have any interest in me?"  
"Because you are amazing and beautiful and intelligent. Trust me, the way he was looking at you, he is definitely already completely smitten."  
Alice gave her a look that said she still didn't believe it but chose not to argue. After she finished her coffee, she headed over to the palace to meet Thor.


	10. Chapter 10

Thor greeted her kindly and led her down the hall to the library, showing her the book he was trying to decipher.  
“I believe I have figured out some of the code but it is proving to be out of my range of skills. Perhaps you could take a look at it and translate some of it.”  
“Sure. I can try. I mean, I am not exactly familiar with Asgardian languages but codes are usually easy enough to decipher. I might not know what I translated but I should be able to translate it.”  
Thor smiled down at her with affection, grateful that this beautiful maiden was so eager to help him. She looked at the book and the parts that he had already figured out and began working on it. Alice figured that Thor would leave her by herself, probably having some kind of kingly duties to perform but he stayed by her side the entire time, sitting across the table from her, sometimes looking over her shoulder to see what she was doing. Although his presence served as a distraction from her work, she was happy to have him there. Whenever he was looking over her shoulder, his face was always quite close to hers and sometimes they made eye contact. Alice wanted to believe she wasn’t imagining the admiring way he looked at her; maybe Anne was right after all.  
For the next several days, Alice spent her time with Thor, working on the book and returning to Loki’s palace each night. She was really enjoying working on the translation and her feelings for Thor were definitely growing with each conversation they had. Alice wasn’t used to men being as kind to her as Thor had been and it was a refreshing change. One day, Thor couldn’t join her in the library because he had to see to an issue with his warriors. Alice sat working for hours, making quite a bit of progress, but she eventually needed to take a break. She decided to explore the palace, wandering among the vast hallways and many rooms. Eventually, she stumbled into a vast ballroom, where a servant was on her hands and knees scrubbing the floors. She was a young girl and looked quite exhausted from the efforts. Without thinking, Alice approached the servant, hiked up her dress, and grabbed a sponge from the soapy bucket to start cleaning the floors. The servant just stared at Alice for a moment, knowing she was the king’s new chosen companion.  
“You don’t have to do that miss,” she said.  
“No, it’s no big deal. I have to clean my floors all the time at home. Please, let me help.”  
The servant didn’t protest further, allowing Alice to help her scrub the floors. They were almost finished as Thor was walking down the hallway. Having found Alice missing from the library, he went in search of her, hoping she had just decided to wander the palace and hadn’t gone home without saying goodbye to him. He was just strolling past the ballroom when he noticed the shimmer of her blue dress out of the corner of his eye. Stopping in the door, he stared in wonder as Alice helped his servant scrub the floors. She had her dress hiked up and was talking easily with the servant as they worked, asking her about her interests and family. Thor, already taken by her beauty and intelligence, was now in awe of her humility and kind spirit. The sight of her connecting so easily with his people confirmed a decision he had been mulling over the last few days; he wanted Alice to be his queen, if she would have him. Deciding not to disturb her, Thor went back to his throne room, planning on visiting Alice in the library a bit later. Alice, after finishing the floor, decided to head back to the library and continue her work. About an hour later, Thor entered, smiling at her and joining her at the table. She looked up from her work, grinning at him, before looking back down at the book.   
“Alice,” Thor began, “might I ask you something?”  
“Sure,” she said, looking up again, “what is it?”  
“I was wondering if you might consider moving in here during your stay. It would be easier on you not needing to go back and forth each day. And I would greatly enjoy the opportunity to get to know you better.”  
Alice looked at the handsome king, in disbelief that he was asking her to move into his palace.   
“Yes, I would like that a lot.”  
“I will go and prepare you a room then,” he said, his face barely able to contain his smile.  
A few hours later, Thor was showing Alice to her room. She had run back to Loki’s palace really quick to tell Anne what was going on; her best friend was in full support of this development. The wardrobe in the room had been fully supplied with dresses and sleeping attire and the bed was large and looked very comfy. Thor left her to get settled, daring to press a kiss to her cheek before he left.


	11. Chapter 11

Alice was really enjoying her time at the palace, working in the library and spending any other free time with Thor. She was falling really hard for this king and she hoped he might let her stay. One evening, she was once again taking a break from her translating and wandering the halls, when she heard a man yelling and what sounded like a woman crying. She turned the corner and saw a tall man standing over a small blonde girl; she recognized the man as one of Thor’s many warriors, though she forgot his name. Just as she was about to leave, not really wanting to interrupt what appeared to be a lover’s quarrel, she saw the man lift his hand and strike the girl hard across the face. That was not something she would stand for.   
“Hey,” she yelled at the man, “leave her alone.”  
“Stay out of this Midgardian. You may have the king’s favor but I will not hesitate to teach you a lesson in respect.”  
“To teach a lesson in respect, one must first know what it actually means. Hitting a woman is not respectful and I feel the king would support me in this.”  
“How dare you talk to me like that?” the warrior said, turning on her as the girl made her escape down the hallway. He raised his hand, about to bring it down across her cheek as Alice cringed and covered her face, when a massive hand grabbed his wrist from behind.   
“You will not lay a hand on her!” the voice boomed behind him.  
Terrified, the man turned around and found himself staring into the face of a very angry king.  
“Your majesty...I was...just teaching this Midgardian that she must respect men on Asgard.”  
“Men yes, but you are no man. You are a coward who uses violence as a means to control women. I should execute you on the spot but I will show you mercy and only banish you to Jotunheim. I feel they will not be as merciful as I.”  
And with that, two guards seized the warrior and dragged him down the hall while Thor rushed over to Alice. He gently kneeled in front of her, slowly pulling her hands away from her face, which was white as a sheet.   
“Are you okay? Did he harm you?”  
“No,” Alice said, her voice shaking. Seeing that man with a hand raised above her had brought back every bad memory of Mark and the times he had beat her. Her knees were shaking and she slowly made her way to the wall, trying to steady herself. Thor, seeing how terrified she was, picked her up in his arms and carried her to her room, placing her gently on the bed, sitting down next to her.  
“Are you alright?” he asked again, taking her hand and stroking it gently.  
Alice slowly nodded her head, saying with a shaking voice,  
“I...I just saw him about to hit that girl and knew I had to do something. Then he turned on me...and...it just brought back...”  
But she couldn’t finish her sentence, collapsing in tears and curling up into a ball on her side. Thor crawled further onto the bed, picking Alice up and taking her into his arms. She sobbed into his armor for a bit before she finally pulled herself together. Thor looked down at her, a question in his eyes, wondering why she was so upset. Taking a deep breath, Alice explained the whole history of her and Mark, how he started hitting her when he got mad, how she finally broke up with him, and how he started stalking her. When she finally finished, she looked up at Thor and saw the anger in his eyes.   
“I will search Midgard until I find him! How dare he beat a woman, especially one as beautiful and smart as you! I’ll...”  
Alice stopped his rant,  
“Thank you. I appreciate that you are so concerned about me but it’s okay now. I have a restraining order.”   
“Well know that you are welcome in my realm for as long as you desire to stay. Forever if you like.”  
“Thank you. I’m kind of tired. Would it be okay if I went to bed?”  
“Of course. I will leave you to get rest.”  
Alice got off of Thor’s lap and stood to her feet. Thor stood as well and headed towards the door, turning at the last minute,  
“Sleep well Alice. I look forward to the pleasure of your company at breakfast.”  
And with that he left the room, leaving Alice with a smile on her face, pondering about how he said she could stay forever if she liked.


	12. Chapter 12

Two nights later, Alice was standing outside on a balcony, gazing up at the stars. The constellations on Asgard were so different from the ones on earth and she couldn’t get enough of them. She was lost deep in thought when a voice behind her made her jump.  
“They’re beautiful aren’t they?” Thor asked, coming up and standing next to her on the balcony.  
“Yeah, I love looking at all of them. There are so many here!”  
“This isn’t even the best view of them. Here, part of the palace blocks them from sight. Would you like to see them more clearly?”  
Alice nodded and Thor led her through the palace and to his chambers. She hesitated a moment before entering his room but she trusted Thor, knowing he would never do something she wasn’t comfortable with; not that she would necessarily mind if he made a move. He led her out onto the balcony, leaving his chambers dark so the stars would be clearer. They stood side by side outside, gazing upwards. Thor started pointing out various constellations to her, telling her stories behind them. Alice was having trouble locating one particular one he was mentioning, not able to follow his line of sight. To show her better, Thor stepped up behind her, placing his arms around her, using his hand over hers to direct her sight towards the set of stars. He leaned down, his face parallel with hers,  
“That one right there is the tip of his bow and that one there is the arrow,” he said, guiding her hand.  
“I think it’s wonderful that you know...so much...about...stars,” Alice said, her speech becoming halted as she realized how close Thor’s face was to hers.  
Their eyes met as they just stared at each other for a moment. Then, as if pulled by gravity, they leaned into each other, eyes closing as their lips met. They kissed each other as if hesitant, unaware that they both had feelings for each other. As they broke apart, Thor stood upright, looking down at Alice, smiling at her. She returned his gaze, as he said,  
“I apologize if that was out of line. I meant no disrespect.”  
“No, I have been hoping you would do that for awhile.”  
“Then I apologize for keeping you waiting so long. A beautiful maiden should never be kept waiting for a kiss.”  
“I must say I agree with you on that subject,” Alice said, standing on her toes and pressing her lips against his again, wrapping her hand behind his neck, playing with his hair. Thor returned the kiss eagerly, picking Alice up and seating her on the balcony, enabling him to kiss her deeper, as he wrapped both his arms around her waist. For hours, they stayed out on that balcony, exchanging kisses and both wondering what took them so long.


	13. Chapter 13

Back at Loki’s palace, Anne was still working furiously on her book; she was quite close to being done and Loki was more than willing to give her space to do so. It had been weird having Alice still on Asgard but not seeing her very often. But Anne was happy for her; she knew she was spending time with Thor and Anne hoped that they would eventually be together.   
One day, Anne was sitting in the library, having taken a break from her writing and browsing through a book of poetry, Loki being very distracting as usual. She was just about to give into Loki’s distractions when her phone rang. With Loki’s lips still on her neck, she reached over to her phone, seeing that it was her mother. Sighing, she answered,  
“Hey mom.”  
Loki moved to the seat opposite her, knowing that she would be quite unhappy with him if he continued his affections while she was talking to her mom. Besides, it was always entertaining to watch her facial expressions during these conversations.  
“Yes...I know...ok...I know mom...well I...no, I know it has been a long time...yes...ok...ok...I promise...this weekend...ok...mom, mom, I have to go...yeah...seven o’clock...I got it...yes...ok...ok!....alright....bye mom...”  
Anne finally hung up the phone, shooting Loki a look that he knew all too well.  
“She’s wants you to come visit, doesn’t she?”  
“Yes, this weekend. Wants me to spend the whole weekend there.”  
“Let me come with you.”  
“You don’t have to do that. Trust me, it will not be a fun weekend.”  
“I want to go. You have met my family...it is only fair that I should meet yours.”  
“You don’t want to. Trust me.”  
“Are you ashamed of me?” he asked, a look of sorrow crossing his face.  
“No...no...not at all,” Anne said, crossing over to the chair he was sitting in, planting a lustful kiss on his lips, “I’m ashamed of them.”  
“While I can completely appreciate that, I still want to meet them. Besides, perhaps my presence there will make your weekend easier.”  
“Well, I can’t argue with that,” she said, leaning in for another kiss. Loki kissed her back hungrily, quickly moving from her lips to begin kissing a line down her neck. He started to suck a mark into her neck when Anne quickly stopped him.  
“No, no marks. I can’t have them all over my neck when I go to see my family, especially if you are there with me. I am fairly certain they still think I am ‘undefiled’.”  
“Well,” Loki said, smirking, “I know that I have personally made that statement untrue.” He ran his tongue along her collarbone before continuing, “but I will agree to no marks...at least where they can see them.”  
And with that, he removed the top she was wearing, running his hands up her sides, intent on distracting her from her reading for the rest of the evening.


	14. Chapter 14

Back at Thor’s palace, Alice continued working on translating the book, being blissfully distracted by the Asgardian king quite frequently, which she had no complaints about. One day, Alice was stuck on her translation and needed a break; she decided she would be Thor’s distraction for once and wandered over to the throne room, where she knew he would be. Glad to see that he was alone, except for his guards, she approached the foot of the throne,  
“My king, I request an audience with you.”  
Thor beamed down at her, indicating for her to continue.  
“You see, I have an issue that needs your attendance, if it pleases your majesty.”  
“And would this issue require a private audience?”  
“Indeed it would.”  
Smiling, Thor dismissed his guards, gesturing for Alice to climb the stairs up to his throne.  
“And what exactly is the issue, m’lady?”  
“Well, you see, my king, my lips are feeling remarkably unkissed at the moment and it causes me great distress.”  
“That is an important issue, one that I will see to personally and immediately.”  
Thor then reached up, pulling Alice onto his lap and kissing her passionately, his hands gripped tight around her waist. Her hands came around his neck, her tongue running along his lips until he allowed her entrance. Their kissing was becoming more urgent as his hands ran up and down her back, when a voice came from below the throne,  
“Ahem!”   
Thor and Alice quickly broke apart, looking down at Frigga who looked almost mortified at the sight of her son making out on his throne. Alice resituated herself to a more appropriate position on his lap while they waited for Frigga to continue,  
“Thor, your brother and his lady are waiting outside. They request an audience with you. Shall I send them in or tell them to come back later?”   
“You may send them in,” Thor said, placing a kiss on Alice’s cheek.  
Anne and Loki wandered in, shocked to see Alice sitting on the king’s lap. Anne gave Alice a look and Alice sent one back, confirming that yes, her and Thor were, in fact, together. Anne beamed at her before continuing with the real reason her and Loki were there.  
“I was just coming to tell you that Loki and I will be gone for a few days. My mom wants me to come visit for the weekend.”  
“Ugh, I’m sorry,” Alice said, making a face.  
“Yeah, but just wanted to let you know in case you stopped by the palace and we weren’t there.”  
“Ok...thanks...”Alice said, suddenly being distracted by Thor placing kisses down her neck. Loki and Anne exchanged a look, taking that as their signal to leave.


	15. Chapter 15

The next day, Anne and Loki stood at her parents’ front door. Anne had insisted Heimdall send them somewhere near her old apartment so she could grab her car and actually drive to their house, not wanting to raise suspicion. As far as her parents and sister knew, she still worked at the travel agency. Anne took one last nervous look at Loki, who reassured her with a quick kiss before unlocking the door and going inside.  
Anne’s mom came over to greet her, taken aback by Loki standing there.  
“Anne, who is this?”  
Her dad came around the corner from the kitchen while her sister appeared out of her bedroom upstairs.   
“Um, guys. This is Lawrence, my boyfriend. I decided to surprise you.”  
Anne’s dad came over, shaking his hand.  
“Lawrence, it’s nice to meet you.”  
“Likewise, sir. Anne talks non-stop about her family and it is wonderful to finally meet you.”  
“Yes, it’s too bad she never mentioned you to us,” her mom replied, looking over at Anne again, glancing over her outfit and ponytail, “Honey, you really should wear your hair down more. It makes your face look fatter when it’s up.”  
She headed back into the kitchen to finish fixing dinner as Anne’s face fell. She had hoped her parents would at least tone down the nagging on her with Loki there but apparently not. Loki glanced over at his girl, noticing the look of sorrow on her face, before discretely leaning down to whisper in her ear,  
“I love it when your hair is up. Just lets me see your stunning face.”  
About an hour later, Loki and Anne were seated around the table with her family, eating dinner.  
“So Lawrence,” her father asked, “what is it you do for a living?”  
“I’m a lawyer.”  
“Great! Honorable career. We keep telling Anne she would make a great lawyer but she is so stubborn sometimes, insistent on working at that travel agency.”  
“Dad, not this again please.”   
“I’m just saying, it’s nice to see you with someone who has a future. Speaking of, did your sister tell you she got accepted into med school?”  
“No, I didn’t hear that.”  
“Yeah, she’ll be starting in the fall. You know, you could go back to school.”  
“I could but I’m not going to.”  
There was an awkward silence as the family ate for awhile, Loki casting glances over at Anne, noticing that she was starting to have trouble keeping it together.   
“So,” Anne began, “I’m actually going to have my book published, the one I’ve been working on.”  
“That’s nice dear. Oh, did we tell you, your dad is being transferred to a new job in California. We’re moving next week.”  
“What? No, you didn’t tell me that.”  
“Oh, well, we haven’t really told anyone outside the family. You’re the first one we’ve told.”  
Loki was in utter shock as he watched Anne and her family interact. Anne had always told him that she understood how he felt but, until now, he never really understood how much. He glanced over at Anne, grabbing her hand under the table and running his thumb along it, trying to comfort her as much as he could.   
Later that night, Anne lay in her bed in her childhood bedroom. Loki had left after dinner, biding his time until her family was in bed. Once he saw all the lights off in the house, he appeared in Anne’s bedroom, quickly joining her under the covers and taking her in his arms. She couldn’t help the tears that started falling; her family even liked Loki more than her, praising his job and even hinting that he would be a better match for her sister. Loki stroked her hair as she cried on his chest, trying to keep quiet so as not to alert her family. Once she finally got the tears to stop, she looked up at Loki.   
“I told you I understood your whole family thing.”  
“I will never doubt you again. And they are like that all the time?”  
“All the time. I literally cannot remember the last time they said they were proud of me or complimented me on something.”  
“Well then they are blind, my queen. I have seen your sister and heard her accomplishments, and I still say that you are far more beautiful and intelligent than she.”  
“Thank you. And I definitely noticed that my mom insinuated that you should actually be dating my sister.”  
“I did catch that. However, aside from the fact that we would have nothing in common, I highly doubt your sister would appreciate my other special “skills” when it comes to relationships,” Loki said with an evil grin, leaning down to kiss Anne passionately.  
“It’s true. I am so glad you came with me. What would I do without you?”  
“Quite possibly go on a homicidal killing spree...but who am I to judge?”  
Anne laughed and curled up into Loki’s arms, resting her head on his chest. Loki had a sordid past, it was true, but Anne would still always love him. They kept each other sane and were a constant reminder to the other that they were loved and valued. Anne fell asleep with Loki’s fingers playing in her hair, grateful that they would be returning to Asgard tomorrow.


	16. Chapter 16

Alice had made remarkable progress on the translation of the book; she should have it finished in a few days. Deciding to go show Thor her work, she wandered down the hall to his chambers. It was late but she hoped he would still be awake. Gratefully, he was and Alice knocked on his door, him opening it and inviting her in. She sat on his bed where he joined her, placing a quick but passionate kiss on her lips before looking at her work. For hours they went over the translations, Thor explaining to her what it meant in Asgardian. Alice soon started to get tired and starting putting her stuff away, planning on heading back to her room.  
“You may stay with me tonight, if you like,” Thor told her.  
“I would love that.”  
Thor vanished for a moment, changing into his Asgardian sleepwear. When he came back out, wearing what looked like red, silken boxer-briefs, Alice had to take a moment to collect herself as she looked over his toned body; his body was incredible and coupled with his smile and wonderful personality...yeah she was definitely one lucky girl. Unsure of what she should wear to bed, Alice hesitated.  
“Thor,” she started, “I don’t want to wear my dress to bed but I am a little unsure of taking it off.”  
“Well, while I cannot imagine you would have anything to be ashamed of, would it make you more comfortable if we turned the lights off first?”  
Alice nodded and Thor turned the lights off, plunging them into darkness. She slipped her dress off and crawled beneath the covers with Thor. He instantly pulled her against his bare chest, kissing her deeply, his hands exploring her body as his tongue explored her mouth. Alice sighed into his mouth as she ran her hands along the muscles in his chest and arms. They spent a long time in this manner, taking the time to learn and appreciate the body of the other, all the while exchanging kisses. However, they didn’t let it get farther than that; both felt they wanted to take things slow and knew there would be plenty of time for more things later. Alice fell asleep in total contentment, wrapped in the Asgardian king’s arms.


	17. Chapter 17

Four days later, Alice finally finished the translation of the book. She felt great satisfaction at the fact that she had successfully helped her Asgardian king. Things were going so well with him, she having taken up permanent residence in his chambers each night. Happily, Alice went to show him her completed work. Finding him in his throne room once again, she promptly went up to his throne, seating herself in his lap, and handing him the book. He glanced over it then looked at Alice, a sudden sorrow crossing his face.   
“What’s wrong?” Alice asked.  
“Now that you are finished with the translation, I have no excuse with which to keep you here. And I am assuming you will want to be returning to Midgard to resume your life.”  
“Thor, my king, didn’t you tell me that I was allowed to stay here as long as I desired?”  
“Well, yes, of course.”  
“Well, then I desire to stay here longer, with you.”  
Thor’s face lit up in delight as he kissed her soundly on the lips. When Thor broke away from her, looking her in the eyes,  
“Alice, since you are staying, would you do me the honor of becoming my queen of Asgard?”  
“You really think I could be queen?”  
“I am certain of it. I have seen you interact with the people of Asgard. You have wonderful diplomacy skills. And everyone here already adores you, especially my mother. She raves about you constantly. So would you please become my queen, bear my children, and make me happy for the rest of my life?”  
Alice smiled, blushing at Thor’s compliments, before leaning down to give him a long, lingering kiss, filled with love.  
“Is that a yes then?” he asked.  
“Yes,” Alice said leaning down to kiss him again, his hands threading in her hair to bring her closer, expressing his love to her.  
The next day, Loki was just emerging from a long bath when Anne approached him.  
“My love, we’ve been invited to another banquet at Thor’s palace. Alice told me they have an announcement to make.”  
“If it is the announcement I think it is, we must definitely attend,” Loki said.


	18. Chapter 18

The next night, Alice joined Thor in their bedroom. The banquet had been a raving success. Anne was so happy for her friend and couldn’t stop telling her congratulations, talking about all the fun they would have living on Asgard together. Like Anne, Alice would still go back to visit her family, but she had quit her job and would spend most of her time in the palace. Alice climbed into bed with Thor, able now to not be ashamed at removing her dress. Promptly crawling over to him, she began ravishing his mouth as his hands quickly drew her against his body. His fingers ran down her back, moving quickly to the spot he knew would drive her crazy and cause her to dig her nails into his chest. They kissed each other breathless and one of Thor’s hands started to move to the clasp of her bra, one of the only Midgardian things she still hung on to. He popped it open and was about to remove it when Alice froze.  
“Is something wrong, my love? Do you not want to do this? I can stop if you like.”  
“No, I want to do this. I really do. It’s just...I don’t know...whenever Mark and I were together, he was so rough and selfish and I guess I’m just wary. Not that you are anything like him...I just...I don’t know. I guess I’m nervous.”  
“What do mean he was selfish?”  
“Well, he just didn’t care about me experiencing any...pleasure...if you get my meaning. It was always all about him.”  
Thor looked almost shocked that any man would do that to a girl, that he would put his pleasure above hers in bed.  
“I assure you that he was not a real man then. Any real man gets more pleasure out of seeing his woman satisfied than satisfying himself.”  
Alice smiled at him, leaning over to give him another kiss.  
“If you do not want to do this, we don’t have to,” Thor said, leaning over to place delicate kisses on her neck.  
“But I assure you I will be gentle,” he murmured into her skin, brushing his fingers over the spot on her back again.  
“And I promise that you will experience pleasure at least three times over before I even consider my own,” he whispered, brushing a gentle kiss over her cleavage.  
Alice sighed and smiled at him again, leaning back and removing the bra herself, before capturing Thor’s mouth with her own, kissing him with renewed hunger as his hands replaced the garment previously discarded. He then kissed a line down her collar bone and sternum as he removed the bottom half of her clothing with her quickly following with the removal of his.


	19. Chapter 19

Loki and Anne returned from the banquet, definitely having consumed too much wine due to the celebratory nature of the dinner. Anne was ecstatic for her friend and couldn’t wait to start this new chapter in her life with her. Laughing and stumbling a bit, the couple made their way into the bedroom, Loki already attacking her mouth with his own as he pushed her back on the bed. He knew that with Anne’s best friend marrying Thor, he would have to make even more of an attempt to get along with him. But for Anne, he would; he would do anything for her. She was the best thing in his life and he loved her with everything in his being. For the first time, someone saw him as worthy and he would never let that go, doing anything to keep her there with him. Loki ceased his kissing for a moment, looking down at Anne, lying prone beneath him on the bed.  
“Anne, I love you. Promise me you will never leave me.”  
“I could never leave you, my king. I am yours forever. And you are mine.”  
“I am. And tonight, I shall prove my love to you over and over again, slowly, intimately, in every single way you adore. Do not plan on resting your eyes tonight, my pet.”  
Anne beamed up at him, as he brought his lips back down to hers, once again tying her wrists to the headboard. Tonight he would tease her and ravish her, repeatedly, showing her his desire for her. Once she was secure, he kissed his way down her neck, taking a moment to draw her earlobe between his teeth, pulling a moan from her lips. He ran kisses down her collarbone as he vanished all of their clothing with a wave of his hand. As his fingers ran along the skin on her newly exposed chest, he looked at her, knowing there was never a single thing about her he would ever get bored with.


End file.
